Whiskey Lullaby
by Taylorblue21
Summary: After serving his time in war, Percy comes home to find that his wife has betrayed him in the worst way possible. Can they work through it or will this tear them apart? One-shot.


**Disclaimer: I do not own Twilight or the song Whiskey Lullaby. **

"Please, don't do this!" she screamed. Percy walked faster, too hurt and betrayed to listen to Annabeth's pleas. He had just gotten home from serving his time in war. The battles were fierce and there were times when he wondered if he would make it. The only thing that kept him going was his girl. Knowing that she loved him and was awaiting for his return.

When his commanding officer informed him that he could leave, he was ecstatic. He packed up his bags with a grin and wished all of his buddies luck. The ride back home was slow and tortorously long, but his memories of Annabeth had kept him from getting too impatient. When the taxi had finally stopped in front of his house he had jumped out of the cab as quick as a gun shot. He grabbed his bags, paid the cab driver and tipped him good. He thanked the man for listening to his stories and dealing with his impatience. The driver simply grinned and muttered something about "young love". Percy ran up the driveway and quietly opened the door. He wanted to surprise his wife, her letters had started sound a little depressed and he wanted to see her bright smile again. As he tiptoed up the stairs he heard some ominous giggling coming from their bedroom.

His curiosity won out and he quickly reached for the door, flinging it open to a sight that would change his life forever. Annabeth was laying in bed clad in only a bra and a matching pair of underwear, the man laying next to her was wearing as little as she was. A bottle of Jack Daniels was clung tightly in her fist, her hair and make-up all over the place. Several emotions ran across her face: disbelief, regret, and-most prominent-guilt.

His smile faded and disgust swirled across his handsome features. Percy ran out side with Annabeth hot on his trail. Thunder roared and rain pelted at the distraught couple. The perfect background to a tragic scene.

"Please Percy! It's not what you think," she protested. He spun around and glared at her, anger rolling off of him in waves. She winced and avoided his eyes, waiting for him to speak.

"Not what I think? Are you kidding me? Because it sure as hell looked like you were about to shack up wtih a stranger," he yelled. He stared her down, daring her to disagree with his conclusion.

"I was drunk and I missed y-"

" And that makes it all better? When I get drunk I don't go out and bring other girls home to sleep with them," he spat. Tears flew rapidly down Annabeth's cheeks. She knew that no matter how many times she tried to explain or how hard she tried to force him to understand, he wasn't going to listen. All that he could see was that his wife betrayed him while he was gone fighting for his country.

"I love you, Percy. Please don't leave me. I promise if you give me another chance I won't make the same-"

"You promise? You promised to love me and be devoted to me for as long as we lived. You promised to never committ adultry. But did you keep those promises? No. Your promises mean nothing to me now." his tone was sharp, leaving Annabeth breathless and unable to defend herself. The tears flowed faster and Percy instinctively raised his hand to comfort her. But he dropped it just as quickly, angry at himself for trying to help the person who broke his heart. He turned around and ran away from the love of his life.

Annabeth fell to the ground sobbing. Her undergarments were soaked and clung to her body. She didn't care that she was outside in a busy neighborhood half-naked, she didn't care that she had deserted the man in their bedroom, the only thing she cared about was Percy. He was her rock, her life-line, and now he is gone. That wasn't even what the worst part of it was. No, the worst part is that _she_ was the one who pushed him away.

~WB~

Percy smiled at the bartender in thanks and quickly downed his third shot. He was tired of thinking of his wife and her new boyfriend. It shot gut-wrenching pain throughout his body, rendering him breathless. For the past hour he had been trying to think of reasons where he had gone wrong.

Did he not show her he loved her enough? Did he take her for granted? Did he expect to much of her? _No_, he thought with a sigh, _the only thing I'm guilty of is putting too much trust in her._ He slammed the glass back down, startling the bartender. He shot the man an apologetic smile which he in turn nodded in understanding.

"Hey handsome," a feminine voice purred. Percy turned around and found a drop-dead gorgeous woman smirking at him. She had startling red hair, piercing green eyes, and a body to die for. Her dress accentuated her eyes perfectly, and her black heels made her slender legs go on for miles.

"What's your name, babe? I'm Rachel," she shoved her hand toward Percy and he took it, relaying his name. He liked Rachel, her personality was enticing and drew him in instantly. He wasn't sure if she was someone who was relationship material, but she would at least be a distraction from _her_.

"Would you like to dance?"

"I would love to," he grinned. She shot him a sly smile and grabbed his hand, leading him to the dance floor. An upbeat country song flowed from the speakers. "Follow Me" by Uncle Kracker. He smiled down at her and placed one hand on the small of her back and grabbed her other hand. Rachel put her hand on his shoulder as they started swaying to the beat. Percy would occasionally twirl and dip her, earning him delighted giggles.

When the chorus started he closed his eyes and softly sang the lyrics. He opened his eyes to twirl Rachel again, but she was gone. Straight, red hair morphed into bright, blonde curls. Piercing green eyes blended into a stormy, grey. Annabeth. Percy blinked and Annabeth was gone, Rachel in her place with concern written across her face.

"Percy, are you alright? You look like you just saw a ghost."

"Something like that," he mumbled. "I'm sorry, but I really need to leave. Thanks for the dance." Rachel started to protest but he had already disappeared into the crowd of dancers. He almost jogged towards the bar in his haste to leave, his reasons for dancing with Rachel forgotten. He paid for his drinks and tipped the bartender nicely. He wished the employee a good night and bolted for the door.

Percy was disgusted with himself. He went to the bar to drink away his problems, not to have hallucinations about the source of his issues. He chastised himself for not realizing that a public place would be the worst spot to numb his pain. What if he got drunk and slept with one of the girls? He didn't care that his wife had almost done the same thing, cheating was wrong no matter what the situation.

Part of him wanted to call Annabeth and tell her he forgave her and make he swear that she would never do it again. But the other part, the more sensible part, knew that he would need time to think it over. He believed in second chances, and he loved his wife too much to throw away their marriage.

He sighed and pulled at his hair in frustration. He didn't want to think about any of that right now, the betrayal was still too raw. The only thing he wanted right now was alcohol. He called a near by hotel and rented it out for a few days, which was plenty of time for him to think things through.

He stopped by a run down store and bought as much alcohol as he could afford. A sigh of relief escaped his lips when he finally got to the hotel room. Finally, he had a way to numb his pain.

~WB~

The echo of Percy's voice haunted her every thought. His hearbreaking last words to her, and the pain blending with the anger in his tortured gaze. She couldn't get him off her mind even if she wanted to. It has been three days, two hours, and fifteen minutes since she last saw him. Over that period of time she had sent him twenty texts, thirty calls, and fifteen voicemails. There wasn't a single reply.

Annabeth didn't know what to do with herself without him. She took a vacation from her job, she stopped replying to her friends calls, she had completely cut herself off from the world. There was only one voice she wanted to hear, one person who could bring her out of the depression she has sunk into, but he isn't speaking to her.

_Should I go find him? Should I ask around and see if anyone has seen him recently? No,_ she thought with a huff, _I can't force him to forgive me. _She wasn't sure if she could sit around and wait for him. Percy may be a loyal person, but he could hold a good grudge.

What if he finds someone else? No, Percy wouldn't do that as long as they are still married. Or..would he? After all, she did cheat on him. With that painful though, she quickly jumped off of the bed and grabbed her keys. He's had enough time to think things through, it was time for her to take action.

She swung the door open and was met with two solemn police officers. The one who was about to knock had spiky, brown hair and striking blue eyes. The other one was shorter and had brown wavy hair, and the same shade of blue eyes as the other. The spiky, brunette officer cleared his throat and changed his expression to one of indifference.

"Excuse me, ma'am. Are you Annabeth Jackson?" She nodded in response.

"My name is Connor and this is Travis. I'm sorry that we have to meet under such tragic terms." A look of pity flashed across his face, startling her.

"What do you mean?" she asked, her voice raising a couple of octaves. Fear ripped through her, sending tremors down her spine. Connor nodded at Travis which caused him to sigh and take his hat off. Oh God.

"Your husband was at the Marriott Hotel. We got a call from one of the residents saying that hey heard a suspicious thump. When we got there he was already gone, killed from alcohol poisoning." he explained. They hated this part of the job. The pain and the screams of denial were heartbreaking to witness.

"No. _No._ I just saw him a few days ago, he's alive and healthy," Annabeth protested.

"I'm sorry, ma'am."

"Percy doesn't drink. I mean sure he has a glass or two whenever we have something to celebrate, but he's not a heavy drinker. You must have the wrong person." She went to shut the door but Connor's hand shot out and pushed it open. She shot them a look of impatience, the intensity of her glare almost making them flinch.

"We found this in his hand. We thought you might want to have it," Travis held out a crinkled, gold envelope. Her name was scrawled across the top in capital letters. She gave them a weary look, but they kept their eyes on the envelope. Annabeth decided that she would just take a peek, confirm that this is all a misunderstanding, and send them on their way. She hesitantly grabbed the envelope and pulled out the two objects within it.

The first was a piece of paper with a small note written on it. "_I will love her till the day I die." _A lump lodged in her throat, it was Percy's handwriting. Anyone could have that masculine scrawl though, right? There are thousands of men out there, and they could easily have similar handwriting to his. Hope swelled in her heart until she took out the next object.

It was a picture of them at their wedding. His mom had taken it when they had their first dance as husband and wife. Percy had said that it was his favorite and that he would keep it forever. Her knees gave out on her and she fell to the floor. Her eyes stayed trained on the photo.

"Why?" she yelled, her face lifting toward the ceiling. Tears flowed down her cheeks in thick streams as her loud sobs filled the room. She kept repeating the question over and over again. Why would God take him from her? Why would Percy drink so much? Why didn't she get the chance to make things right?

Annabeth rocked back in forth, whispering her love to him. Connor and Travis tried to comfort her, but she said she wanted to be alone. She thanked them for their patience and ignored the sympathy in their gaze. She didn't want sympathy, she just wanted her husband.

She stayed in that position all night. Asking unanswered questions and mourning for her love.

~WB~

The bad thing about living in a small town is the gossip. It spreads like wildfire, and suddenly the whole town knows of her betrayal. At the funeral no one could look her in the eye. It was as if she had died along with him and no one seemed to care. Only her parents and a couple of close friends supported her. They were disappointed, but they stuck by her side in the end.

The funeral was small, just like he would have wanted. The preacher gave everyone a chance to say their goodbyes, and there wasn't a dry eye in the crowd when Annabeth said hers.

When they lowered him into the ground, she felt her body pull down as well. It was as if they were still connected, even though he was..gone.

Even after everyone was long gone, Annabeth lingered. She sat by the patch of dirt covering his coffin, and wished she could just dig it up and find him alive and well. But she knew in her heart that he was gone. His heart stopped beating, his breathing disappeared, and his sea-green eyes would never again open. She knew all of this, yet she was still in denial.

She lightly traced the carving on his headstone, trying to memorize the words. She didn't want to forget any of the details of this day, it was one of the worst days of her life. She knew it was her fault, every drop of alcohol that worked against his body was because of her. She wished she could take it all back, press the reverse button on her life.

Where would they be? Would she have his child? Would he finally pursue his dream job? Would they have a romantic anniversary? So many questions, so many hopes, and they are all gone. She hated herself, she wished that she was the one who died, not him.

"You were always so full of life. Every smile that crossed your face lit up the room, every laugh that left your lips made my day, everything about you is perfect. I couldn't imagine my life without you the day we got married, and I still can't now," she sobbed. Rain started to drizzle, but Annabeth didn't move an inch. She had so much to say and she wasn't going to leave until she was finished.

"I know I broke my promise, and I'm so sorry for that. But you broke your promise too. You said you would be by my side through thick and thin, but you left. Why? Why didn't you try to work it out? Why did you drink so much? If I had known I would have helped you. Damn it Percy, I could've saved you!" she screamed. She collapsed on the ground, her head resting on his headstone and her body shaking violently from the force of her sobs. She never knew that his spirit was watching her.

~WB~

Days turned into weeks, and weeks turned into months. Annabeth often wondered why she was still living. What's the point? Everyone hated her, the love of her life was gone, and her co-workers steered clear of her. Her mom's daily calls narrowed to once a month, her friends stopped visiting, and her dad didn't bother to keep in touch. Everyone had abandoned her.

No one knew about her alcohol addiction. She didn't mean for it to get this out of control, she just wanted a way to escape the pain. But it was always this day that she drank too much. The day he died. The guilt was always there, brewing under the surface and eating away at her, but today it reached its peak.

She didn't receive her usual calls that offered sympathy and promises to stop by. Not one call, text, or email had been made. Annabeth was disappointed, but not surprised. She knew that one day everyone would finally give up on her. She suddenly realized that she had no one anchoring her to this world, no one to stop her from taking her own life.

With that thought, she grabbed as much alcohol as she could and a picture of Percy before strolling to _their_ room. She locked the door, smiling softly at the idea of someone trying to thwart her plans. As if.

Annabeth clung to the whiskey in her grasp, tears silently flowing down her cheeks as she looked down at the picture. It was their third date, and he had taken her to the lake. They were just going for a picnic, but he had talked her into swimming with him. Since they didn't have bathing suits, they stripped down to their underwear. He beat her too it and waded into the water first. While his back was turned, she grabbed her camera. She waited for him to turn around, and when he finally did she snapped the picture just as he was about to tell her something.

He looked so beautiful. His sea-green eyes sparkled in the moonlight, his black hair reaching just shy of his eyebrows, and his lips parted slightly. It was one of her favorite pictures of him.

She swallowed a large portion of the bottle, content with the strong burn it evoked. She deserved the pain, especially after all of the pain she had caused. Every intake of breath was a mistake. She didn't deserve to live, not after everything she's done.

Negative thoughts continued to fill her mind, causing her hand to instinctively reach for the alcohol. Percy watched Annabeth waste away. Sometimes he would shout at her to put down the whiskey, sometimes he would cry at her inevitable fate, and sometimes he would pray that God have mercy on her. But she never heard any of it. They were in separate world, battling for the other.

Annabeth kept drowning in the endless alcohol, and it's effects were nothing short of terrifying. It was slowly killing her from the inside-out, but she didn't notice. Her system was working against her, sending red flags in warning. She had vomited numerous times, but she still kept on. Her brain stopped sending her body signals to do important functions, such as blinking and breathing. Her heartbeat started to slow as air quit filling her lungs. It was in that moment that she finally saw him.

His hair was in perfect disarray, his dark blue dress shirt rolled up to his elbows, his dark jeans dangled alluringly low on his hips, but his eyes didn't match his casual appearance. Tears clouded his sea-green eyes, and his cheeks were flushed from previous tears. When he saw that she could see him, _really _see him, he collapsed on his knees in front of her.

"Baby, I am so sorry for all that you have been through. But you need to fight, you need to stay alive. It's not your time, yet. Breathe, Annabeth. Stay alive," he pleaded. A lump formed in his throat, he didn't want this for her. He wanted her to live her life to the fullest, not follow in his footsteps.

"I'll do whatever it takes to be with you," she choked out. Percy watched as she breathed her last breath, and her stormy, grey eyes closed for the last time.

"No! Annabeth? Annabeth!" Percy yelled. Her body slumped back on the bed, his picture still firmly clasped in her hand. He frantically searched the room for her spirit, but she was no where to be found.

"What have I done to you?"

~WB~

Her funeral was small, just like his. Guilt weighed heavily on all of those who attended. No one wanted to admit that they could've done something to prevent this, but their conscience knew better than that. They buried her next to her husband, knowing that's what she would have wanted.

Percy watched the ceremony, listened to the preacher and teared up at the sincere goodbyes. He hasn't seen her since her since the day she died, and he often wonders if he ever will.

He watched everyone leave, some lingering longer than others. He tried not to judge them for abandoning her, since he did the same thing, but he couldn't help it. She was truly alone and they should've realized it. Hell, he should've realized it as well but he was too caught up in his own pain to notice.

He sat by her grave, tears flowing silently down his cheeks. His breathing started to quake at the thought of never seeing her again. He would do anything to just be with her again. He didn't care that she had cheated on him, he knew she regretted it and would do anything to fix her mistake. He had seen what she went through, and he had no doubt that she despised herself for it.

The mistake she made was a distant memory of the past. In that moment he let go of all of the grudges that had been weighing him down, and his tears of sadness turned into joy. He felt lighter, like someone had lifted the sky from his shoulders. All of the anger and resentment he had kept bottled inside of him was finally set free.

He stood up and wiped the tears off of his face. There was only one person who could make this moment perfect, and that was Annabeth. He turned around to start his journey towards finding his wife, but a figure standing beside the willow tree stopped him dead in his tracks. It was _her_.

A strapless white dress flowed around her slender frame. Her blonde hair was curled perfectly, flowing down her shoulders and stopping at her waist. A bright smile lit up her face and her grey eyes sparkled with joy.

He ran towards Annabeth and picked her up, twirling her around in a circle. She laughed and stared into his bright, green eyes. He crashed his lips against hers, their lips moving together in perfect sync. She sighed in contentment and wrapped her arms around his neck, burying her ifngers in his silky, black locks. He wrapped his arms around her waist, hugging her to him possessively.

They stayed there wrapped up in each other's arms, whispering their love and promises for a happy future. This was just the beginning to their forever.

_The End_

**I love a happy ending :) What did you think? Was it alright? Please review! Thanks :)**


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